MŪRIS

D IS FOR DIVISION

Dāvis Sīmanis

Latvia, Czech Republic, 2018, 87 Min

For Vladimir Putin the matter is clear: "Russia's border never ends.” At the edges of the EU, some people see it differently. Historian and filmmaker Dāvis Sīmanis wants to know it more precisely when he explores the peculiarities of the Latvian-Russian border. A deeply moving film and clever reflection on patriotism and exile.

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A photo from 1940 shows the body of Hermīne Puriņa, who was one of the first victims of the Soviet secret service in Latvia. The picture serves as a starting point for various questions: How much does a photo tell? What is a border? Where does it run? And what makes a patriot? In a very personal and multi-faceted film, director and historian Dāvis Sīmanis looks for answers. In addition to numerous absurd border towns and national customs, he also finds two men with bizarre border missions: While Ansis Ataols Bērziņš violently protests against the persistence of Soviet traditions in Latvia and paradoxically hides from the Latvian police in Russia, Aijo Beness as a Bolshevik advocates a return to the Soviet system, for which the son of a Russian woman and a Ugandan man fights in the Donbass on the side of the pro-Russian separatists. Dāvis Sīmanis is always present and thus creates on the one hand a shocking picture of borders that run directly through people, and on the other hand sensational shots of Donetsk and the "Hotel Prague", where pro-Russian fighters train. RP

Dāvis Sīmanis - born in 1980 in Riga, Latvia. He graduated in History and Philosophy from the State University of Latvia and recently earned a doctorate in History. In addition to his work as a director, he teaches film theory and history in Riga and Helsinki. He is known for his poetic documentaries and is a member of the jury for this year's Short Film Competition.